


Maent yn siarad Cymraeg.

by paleolithic_demitasse



Category: Torchwood
Genre: F/M, Gwen Cooper & Ianto Jones Friendship, Ianto's Coffee, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-21
Updated: 2016-10-21
Packaged: 2018-08-23 19:52:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8340505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paleolithic_demitasse/pseuds/paleolithic_demitasse
Summary: Like the title says, they speak Welsh. Them being Ianto and Gwen, the Welsh ones. Early-morning bonding over coffee and teasing Jack.
(Don't worry, it's written in English. For the most part.)





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Torchwood Fest day eleven, the prompt being friendship. I was inspired by a headcanon I saw on tumblr ([x](http://torchwood-headcanon.tumblr.com/post/151880737654/submitted-by-anonymous)) and I desperately wanted to expand it into a ficlet. Hopefully, I did an alright job. Enjoy!

“Ianto, os gwelwch yn dda, fi angen coffi a fi angen yn awr.”

It was 5 in the morning. Gwen Cooper looked bleary eyed and quite ready to go back to sleep. Nevertheless, she looked like a woman on a mission. Unfortunately for the powers that be that were responsible for her being at work so disgustingly early, her mission was not to help hunt down and retrieve whatever rift junk couldn’t wait until a decent, normal time in the morning. Her mission was one of caffeine.

_Ianto, please, I need coffee and I need it now._

Resisting the urge to chuckle, Ianto got up from the desk where he was rapidly typing next to charts of rift activity scans. He strode over to his coffee machine, on the other side of the Hub.

_Too tired for English, then?_ Ianto called back to her over his shoulder, equally deadpan in Welsh as he was in English.

_It happens more often than you’d think_ , came her grumbled response.

Ianto began to work his coffee magic and Gwen wished both in her head and out loud that she was back at home, with Rhys, asleep. Mostly just asleep.

_What kind of rift alert could be this important anyway?_ Obviously impatient, Gwen was walking towards Ianto, towards where there would soon be coffee. _Jack better have a very good excuse for getting me up so early, or I’m going home for the rest of the day._

Unsure whether Gwen was joking around or genuinely did not have enough energy for the English language, Ianto answered in Welsh. _Wouldn’t tell me what it was, he said to wait until at least one other person got here. Jack said it was a three-person job, at least. Apparently, this is too big for us to handle on our own._

_Speaking of which_ , Gwen began carefully, _why is it that you’re both here so early?_

Ianto raised an eyebrow, giving her A Look. No words were needed – language isn’t everything, after all. Gwen giggled at his expression, then visible realisation dawned on her face as she understood Ianto’s implication.

“Oh.”

Ianto laughed.

_Where are Tosh and Owen?_

_Neither picked up when Jack called. He left them be, knowing you'd answer._

_What a BLOODY-_

_Kettle's boiled._

Said kettle clicked off and a familiar whistle filled the air around them. Familiar to Ianto, anyway. As if performing a ritual, Ianto poured the coffee into Gwen’s usual mug.

_Here’s your coffee. Enjoy it now, before Jack gets us to pile into the SUV. Even if I can dig out a travel mug, Owen broke the cup holder in the car, and I never got around to fixing it._

_And why would that be?_

_Now, instead of low chances of coffee spillage in the car, there are no chances whatsoever._

Gwen raised her eyebrows, nodding in acknowledgement of his strategy. She took a sip of her coffee, and sighed in audible relief.

“Eich bod yn angel. Diolch, Ianto.”

“Croeso.”

She smiled at him, clearly more at ease with the world than she had been moments ago. Ianto smiled back. He poured himself a mug of coffee.

They made their way over the walkway surrounding the rift manipulator, back towards the collection of desks, calling out in the direction of Jack’s office. Receiving no reply, they headed for the sofa. Gwen and Ianto collapsed with equal caffeinated enthusiasm onto the relatively soft surface of the couch, careful not to spill any of their drinks.

In between sips of coffee, Gwen talked about Rhys, and Ianto talked about how he was redecorating his flat. Gwen talked about the new season of Strictly Come Dancing, and Ianto talked about his favourite Bond films. Gwen talked about the best (and the worst) bits of working with the police, and Ianto talked about his first job (back in high school, he'd faked an ID to get a job) as a delivery person for Jubilee pizza.

Not a word was spoken in English, and Ianto was glad for it. Truthfully, it was good practice, and even though he wasn’t quick to admit such things, he was enjoying their conversations. It felt part comforting and part nostalgic to speak in the language he had grown up with. It was a shame he didn't speak it more often - it was beginning to fade in his memory.

They talked and talked and talked.

Half an hour later, there was still no sign of Jack. They were on to round two of coffee, and Gwen was being to get restless. Whether it was caffeine jitters or just plain irritation with Jack remained unclear.

_Shouldn’t he at least have left us instructions or something?_ Somehow, Gwen sounded even more agitated in Welsh.

_He’s not in his office, or his bunk, and I can’t see a reason he’d he anywhere else._ Ianto thought out loud. _Wait. Unless…_

At that moment, as if summoned by Ianto’s thoughts, Jack burst in through the cog door. Coat dripping with rain and unsettlingly black slime, he grinned at Ianto and Gwen. Neither acknowledged him, suddenly deep in conversation.

“Morning, team. Now what would you be doing here so early?”

Still nothing from either of them.

Jack made a face, harrumphed and strode towards his office. As he passed his teammates by, he heard snippets of rapid-fire Welsh. From the look on his face, Ianto could tell exactly what he was thinking. The moment he smiled inwardly, loving to see his team bonding. The moment that smile began to tug downwards, realising that this conversation was something he’d never be privy to. The moment he literally stopped and turned around at the sound of his name (spoken with extra emphasis by Ianto), followed by laughter.

“Is something funny?” Jack sounded considerably more nonchalant than he looked.

"Na, dim byd,” came Gwen’s immediate response, sparking another bout of laughter from the two.

Shaking his head, Jack rolled his eyes and made for his office.

Watching him walk away, Ianto burst into even more laughter, prompting Gwen to do the same. It got to the point where he felt in real danger of choking to death before Ianto finally calmed down. Taking deep breaths, he replayed his conversation with Gwen in his mind.

_Alright Gwen, listen up. I have an idea, but you have to trust me and keep talking in Welsh, quickly, and not too loud. Now you say something._

_What should I say?_

_Anything will do. Fill the space with words._

_Okay then, I can do that. I’ve always been something of a talker, in case you hadn’t noticed. I mean, not that I’m saying you wouldn’t have, I know you’re a very observant person-_

_-and I can see exactly what you mean. Okay, he’s coming over now. We can keep saying whatever rubbish we like until he gets over here, then one of us says his name, just once, in the middle of a sentence. Then, we both start laughing._

_Can you see my eyes widening?_

_Yes, that I can._

_Good, because it’s a very deliberate movement. Okay, he’s coming over now._

_That he is. Which means I can say whatever I like because_ Jack _has no idea what I’m saying._

Ianto almost set himself off again just thinking about the expression on Jack’s face when he had whipped around to face them.

He took another sip of coffee.

Smiling to himself, Ianto thought about the ways he could tease his cariad in a very different sense of the word later on.

After all, Jack did seem to enjoy those Welsh vowels of his.


End file.
